Hafsa Omar

I am very committed in achieving exceptional results in tasks and have a keen eye for quality and detail. I am an enthusiastic, hardworking and reliable individual with good work ethics. As a recent master’s graduate, I possess knowledge and skills in reasoning, analytic thinking and research. Throughout the years I have shown good interpersonal skills as well as excellent communication skills which I have gained through work experience and studying. I work efficiently in a team in addition to being capable of working on my own initiative. 

My current role I have delved further into therapeutic models such as coping mechanisms using CBT and DBT, which I found  very effective in understanding how to deal with stress, ruminating thoughts and emotional distress. Working with children suffering from mental health difficulties has furthered my understanding in the event, the cognitive effect on interpretation and psychological impact on emotion. I have approximately two years of experience working in mental health settings as a care support worker where I worked specifically with different needs from complex behaviours to general needs with disorders such as ASD, Smith-Magenis syndrome and self-harm, as well as verbal and non-verbal clients. I was able to enforce positive behavioural practices and use techniques through enhancing sensory and motor skills, in addition to using learning support programmes that included PECS and Makaton. In my various roles, I have worked with different age groups in different settings. For example, I have worked in nurseries where I assisted in daily tasks, enforced good behaviour amongst the children and worked with children with early years developmental difficulties such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD). In another role with Cardiff Council, I gained experience working with elderly clients with dementia, as well as other mental health problems caused by isolation and loneliness. This was a particularly rewarding experience as I became more aware of the barriers affecting the service users, had the opportunity to help them overcome these challenges and experience the positive effects that social interaction and engaging in other activities had on them. 

My qualifications include a BPS accredited BSc in Psychology (2:1) and an MSc in Clinical Psychology (2:1). During my postgraduate degree I gained a stronger understanding of research methods and had the opportunity to conduct qualitative and quantitative research using SPSS, which has further developed my IT and statistical data analysis skills. My undergraduate and postgraduate dissertations and modules surrounded topics which have further inspired my interest in psychology, research, mental health and wellbeing.